Tax Assessment Returns
The tax assessment return is one type of record that many genealogists fail to utilize in their research. That is very unfortunate because the tax assessment return can provide very valuable, mostly reliable, and sometimes unique information about our ancestors.
Tax assessment returns may vary in terms of the total amount and kind of information they contain, but they will definitely include the residents’ names and the valuation of their property.
Women in early Pennsylvania were not normally permitted to own land. The usual practice was for a husband to transfer his land to a son by his will, and the widow either remarried and moved to her new husband’s property, or was accomodated by the son who inherited the father’s real estate. For that reason, tax assessment returns usually include only names of men. There are, though, some instances where a name like ‘Widow Stombaugh’ will be listed, indicating that the husband left the real estate property in his wife’s name. But that would be an exception to the rule. For purposes of this discussion, the rule, rather than the exception to that rule, will be referred to.
Individuals were listed on the early tax assessment returns in any of four categories: resident, (single) freeman, inmate, and non-resident.
The resident was any married man who owned a tract of land and resided thereon. A man might be married at the age of seventeen, and own a tract of land. In that case, he would be listed as a resident, despite the fact that he was under the legal age of twenty-one. Residents were sometimes referred to as freeholders in colonial Pennsylvania.
If a man owned land but did not actually reside on the tract, and especially if he resided in a different township or county, he was considered a non-resident.
The titles freeman or single freeman were used interchangeably. They both referred to a man who owned a tract of land, and resided on it, who was at, or over, the legal age of twenty-one years, but was not yet married. A man might be nineteen years old and unmarried and come to own a tract of land; he would be listed as a single freeman. Likewise, a man might be thirty years of age, own a tract of land, but be unmarried; he would also be listed as a single freeman. Freemen and Single Freemen were sometimes known as citizen bachelors in colonial Pennsylvania.
The category of inmate referred to a taxpaying renter. A man might reside in a building on a tract of land owned by a resident, and pay rent to that resident in order to remain living on the property. In that case, he would have to pay taxes himself and be considered an inmate. The word ‘inmate’ comes from Saxon words in and mata meaning ‘a lodger’, which is why the word was later used to refer the people who were lodged at either prisons or mental hospitals.
Men who resided with a family, and who did not pay rent, such as might be the case of an indentured servant, were not required to pay taxes, and therefore would not be considered in any of the four categories. This was because such an individual was considered to be the actual resident's property.
The tax assessment returns were usually compiled in the fall of the year preceeding the collection of the taxes. The collection of taxes then usually took place in the spring of the year for which the return was dated.
The procedure that was employed in order to collect taxes was the following. Due to the limitations imposed by instruments of writing, the tax assessment return would be prepared at the court house. Writing was done, in the 1700s and early 1800s with quill pens and ink dipped out of inkwells. Writing with such instruments was tedious enough in the convenience of the court house, let alone at a house of a resident who might not even possess a table. A previous year’s return would be accessed from the files, and the names of the residents, single freemen, inmates and non-residents who had been found in the township during the previous assessment would be written out on a piece of paper. At least two copies would be made at that time. A copy would be retained at the court house and a copy would be taken into the field by the tax collector. Onto the field copy, the tax collector would not only make check marks to signify that the resident had paid his taxes, but also any notes would be written down alongside the resident’s name. The notes might include references to a change in hands of the property from a deceased father to a son. They might include reference to the resident’s occupation.
Some references which the tax collector wrote on the field copy of the return indicated the property’s physical location, so as to differentiate it from another property owned by a resident with a similar name. The 1786 tax assessment for Woodberry Township listed the author’s ancestor, Jacob Smith as ‘Senior’, while another resident by the same name was listed as ‘on Clover Creek, on Mt, Coxis Land’. From that information, the author’s ancestor who lived on the eastern slope of Blue Knob in present-day Freedom Township, Blair County could be differentiated from the Jacob Smith who lived in present-day North Woodbury Township, Blair County.
The tax collector would travel up and down the valleys gathering the payments and making notations on his assessment return. Then he would return to the court house and fill in the office copy of the tax return with the proper checks to indicate that the taxes had been paid by the property owners. The names of property owners who had died since the previous year’s return had been filled out would be simply crossed out with a line through the name. In some cases, the notation of ‘died’ might also be included. In 1779, while the Indians were increasing their incursions into the frontier regions settled by the Euro-Americans, many of the settlers fled eastward to the relative safety of Cumberland York Counties. The names had all been written onto the assessment return, but when the collector travelled through the countryside, he found most of the families had left their homes. More than half of the names had notations written next to them such as ‘absant’ or ‘vacant land’. Many of those families never returned to Bedford County.
After the advent of more affordable postal rates and the prevalent use of the typewriter and computer, the tax collector stopped travelling throughout the township to collect the taxes from the landowners. Instead, a bill for the taxes owed would be mailed to the landowners, and they were required to either travel to the tax collector'’ office to remit their payment, or they would simply mail the payment to the tax collector. That practice has continued to the present day.
The older tax assessment returns are valuable to the genealogist and historical researcher for the information that can be derived from them. By following a man’s name from one year’s assessment to another, you can see when and how his estate changed according to the increase (or decrease) of its valuation. You can also assume he has either died or moved from the region if his name suddenly disappears or is crossed out. In some cases a man’s name will disappear from the assessment return, to be replaced by an entry such as ‘heirs of -----.’ If the property owner started a business, such as a grist mill, it would usually be written in as a notation - so that the tax assessor might be able to reassess the property for the next year’s taxes. By following the list of single freemen, you could make an assumption that the man either got married or reached the age of twenty-one. In the case of an inmate, his removal from the category of inmate and appearance in the category of resident, would indicate that he had saved enough money to actually purchase his own property and establish his own homestead. If a tax assessment return was not written out in alphabetical order (as some of the field copies might be) the property owners’ names were probably arranged in order of location up or down a valley. Such returns are useful for providing a hint at the neighbors of a certain man. Although tax assessment returns might not be one hundred percent accurate, they provide a wealth of information if you take the time to decipher it.
The original tax assessment returns may not be maintained at the county court house. For information on which counties within the scope of Old~Bedford maintain the tax assessment returns themselves and which ones have donated those originals to a local historical or genealogical society library, see the section titled Court House Records.
Click on the following link to access pages on which the original tax assessment returns for Bedford County during the American Revolutionary War period are reproduced: 
Note: The pages accessed by this link contain not only the reproduced images of the original tax assessment returns, but also transcriptions from those images and cross-references to the lists as they appear in the published Pennsylvania Archives. The books published by James D. Boor, noted in the list below, consist solely of photocopied images of the returns.
The following list contains the names of published books which consist of either photocopied images of the original returns or typed transcripts of those originals.
(Year Unknown) Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
(Year Unknown) Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
(Year Unknown) Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
(Year Unknown) Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1773 - 1774 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1773-4 - 1775 - 1776 - 1778 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1773 - 1774 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1773-4 - 1779 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1773 Transcript Of Taxables For Bedford Co, Pa
by James D. Boor
1773-4 - 1775 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1774 Baree Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1774 - 1775 - 1778 - 1779 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 Barre Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 - 1778 - 1779 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 - 1779 - 1781 - 1789 Frankstown Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1775 - 1779 - 1781 Quemahoning Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1778 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1779 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1779 Barre Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1779 Bedford County Tax List And 1784 Census
by Family Line Publications, 1989
1779 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1779 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1779 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1780 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1780 - 1781 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1780 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Barre Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Millford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Huntingdon Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Shirley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1781 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Barre Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1782 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1783 Taxes For Bedford County, PA
by James D. Boor
1785 Bedford County Tax Lists - Bedford County Pennsylvania Archives, Volume 3
edited by James B. Whisker, 1986 (available from Closson Press)
1788 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Elklick Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788-1899 Huntingdon County Tax Assessment Returns
(unpublished, maintained by the Huntingdon County Historical Society)
1788 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Millford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1788 Woodberry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Elklick Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Millford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Nonresidents of Bedford County, Pa State And County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1789 Woodberry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1790 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Elklick Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 List Of The Land Sold At The Sale In 1791
by James D. Boor
1791 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Milford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Quemahoning Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1791 Woodberry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Elklick Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Milford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Quemahoning Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1792 Woodberry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Bedford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Brothers Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Colerain Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Cumberland Valley Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Dublin Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Elklick Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Hopewell Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Milford Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Quemahoning Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Stoney Creek Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Turkeyfoot Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1793 Woodberry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1796 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1796 Londonderry Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1797 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1798 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1798 Direct Tax Records
(photocopies of originals) (unpublished, maintained by the Historical and Genealogical Society of Somerset County)
1799 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1800 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1802 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1804 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1805 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1806 Tax Records Of Bedford Co. Penna.
by James D. Boor
1807-8 Triennial Assessment And Valuation – Bedford County
by James D. Boor
1808 Triennial Tax Assessment - Bedford County, Pennsylvania
by Fulton County Historical Society, (Volume 12), 1990
1809 St Clair Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1810 St Clair Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1811 Triennial Assessment & Valuation – Bedford County
by James D. Boor
1814 Air Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1814-1817 Bedford County Tax Lists - Bedford County Pennsylvania Archives, Volume 3
edited by James B. Whisker, 1986 (available from Closson Press)
1814 Belfast Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1814 Bethel Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1817-1819 Bedford County Tax Lists - Bedford County Pennsylvania Archives, Volume 5
edited by James B. Whisker, 1989 (available from Closson Press)
1819 Greenfield Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
1846 Blair County Tax Records
by Blair County Genealogical Society, 1981
1846 Triennial Assessment – South Woodberry Township, Bedford County
by James D. Boor
1852 Providence Township, Bedford County Taxes
by James D. Boor
Listing Of Inhabitants In 1776 - Bedford County, Pennsylvania
by Shirley G.M. Iscrupe, 1987
U.S. Direct Tax Of 1798 For Fulton County, PA
by Fulton County Historical Society, (Volume 7), 1985
